sanders



Aug. 27, 1963 w. c. SANDERS 3,101,987

DRIVE-YOURSELF MOTOR VEHICLE CONTRACT AND KEY RECOVERY DEVICE FiledlFeb. 23, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fra. j.

BY HERBERT C. SCHULZE A TTO/QNEY Aug. 27, 1963 w. c. SANDERS 3,101,987

DRIVE-YOURSELF MOTOR VEHICLE CONTRACT AND KEY RECOVERY DEVICE Filed Feb.23, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. WALTER C. SANDERS BY HERBERT C.Schw/ ZE ATTORNEY United States Patent O 3,191,937 DRIVE-YURSELF MTRVEHCLE QNTRACT AND KEY RECVERY DEVlCE Walter C. Sanders, 3924i LaHacienda Drive, San Bernardino, Calif. Filed Feb. 23, 1961, Ser. No.91,257 2 Claims. (Cl. 346-20) This invention relates generally torecovery devices such as drive-yourself rnotor vehicle contracts andspecically to manually operated mechanism adapted to receive thecontract and vehicle key and thereafter automatically time and store theelements securely for later consideration.

One object of this invention is to provide a drive-yourself contract andkey recovery and timing evice that will permit the delivery of a motorvehicle directly to a station where no attendant is present.

The business of leasing drive-yourself motor vehicles and trucks is wel]known and used almost universally throughout the various continents. Themotor vehicle leasing contract is based primarily on a time basis andmileage. lt is relatively easy to compute the mileage as indicated bythe speedometer reading at time oi departure and return. lt is moredifficult to insure exact lhour and date of motor vehicle return unlessan attendant is on duty. Many of the renting or leasing stations aresmall and it is not possible to have an attendant on duty at all hours.Many trucks or cars are leased during the day and returned at night.Heretofore, it has been customary to direct leased vehicles, whenreturned at night, to al1-night service stations or garages. The leasingcontract and vehicle keys are received and timed by attendants withmoderate competence and little interest. T he lessee usually must lindhis way back to the leasing station to pick uphis personal car. rl'hemotor vehicle delivered at night some distance Ifrom the leasing stationwhen no attendant is on duty must be returned in the morning. There areother difculties attending the night or weekend return delivery ofleased motor vehicles which are completely overcome by the device of thepresent invention.

lt is another object of the invention to provide a renting or leasingcontract and key recovery, timing and storing device that will permitdelivery of the motor vehicle directly to a leasing station, hotel orany convenient place predetermined without the necessity of an attendantbeing present.

Still another object of the invention is inthe provision ot anafter-hour lease recovery and timing device that obviates anypossibility of falsiiication thereof by immediate securement and storingof the contract.

Yet another object `of the invention lies in the use or' a specialcontract and key receiving card or member adapted to be manuallypresented by the lessee to a timing device, whereupon the contract andlkey will be automatically retrieved and storedfor later disposition.

A further object of the invention lies in a device for time recordingand storing a drive-yourself lease contract and key that is manuallypresented thereto by a lessee upon return of a motor vehicle to astation after normal operating hours.

A still further object of the invention is in the provision of a traytype lease and key attached card receiving device that presents the cardto a timing device on inward movement and releases the card to storedposition on outward manual actuation.

The `foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention will bereadily understood by those skilled in the art by reference to theattached description when read in conjunction with the attacheddrawings, in which:

artisti Patented Aug. 27, i963 "ice FIGURE l is a side elevational viewin vertical section of a preferred embodiment ot the invention;

FGURE 2 is a front elevational view of FIGURE l;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FlGURE l;

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to FlGURE 3 -With the card receiving tray infull outward position;

FlGURE 5 is a view similar to FIGURE 4 with the tray moved slightlyinward;

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 6--6 of FGURE l;

FlG-URE 7 is `a sectional view taken on the line 7-7 of lFlGURE l;

FIGURE 8 is a plan view from above of the contract and key receivingcard; and

FIGURE 9` is a plan view `from below of the card of FIGURE 8. l

A business such as the leasing of drive-yourself motor vehicles andtrucks is well known. An attendant lls out the terms of the leasingcontract. He then checks the motor vehicle mileage and indicates sameand out time on the agreement. rlhe contract is signed by the user and afinancial deposit or some billing arrangement is made. The motor vehicleor truck key is then handed to the driver. The leasing agreement isalways based on time and mileage has begun. The driver of the leasedvehicle uses it for any desiredy purpose and then returns the vehicle tothe original or some other station of the parent company. The motorvehicles are returned at all hours of the day or night and at variouslocations. It is absolutely essential for proper accounting that theexact time of return be placed on the contract. (The return of thevehicle keys grounds the vehicle with the exact :mileage disclosed.) Themotor vehicle mileage use can thus be easily computed on the contract ata later time.

The major diiculties of after-hour return ot driveyourself motorvehicles and trucks are overcome by the device of the present inventionas disclosed herein. The mechanism comprises a special card or member A;as 'shown `in FIGURES 8 and 9. 'The card A has a conventional envelopesecured thereto r.for receiving the users leasing agreement and carkeys. This card is provided at any of the stations. At each station ofthe parent leasing company, a recovery and timing device adapted toreceive the cards A is provided. These `devices include generally a traytype card receiving and storing mechanism B which has a conventionalelectrical time Iand date clock C operatively supported therein. Thetray type card receiving ldevice B is housed in a wall or cabinet at thesta- `tion in suc-h manner that the only mechanism susceptible ofexterior manipulation or use is .a partially withdrawable tray andhandle therefor. `I-t is immediately apparent thatthe driver of theleased motor vehicle or truck, upon return thereof, merely pulls out thetray of the device B. He then places lthe special card A with containedcontract and key in the tray and moves the tray to .a closed position.The card A is -forced into the time clock and the return time stampedthereon. As will be later described, a succeeding driver whenwithdrawing the tray will cause the prior card A to drop `downwardly toa stored position ready tor computation by an attendant when returningfor duty. The matter of liinal accounting and payment is carried out inthe usual manner.

Referring specifically to the `drawings wherein `a preterred embodimentis disclosed, a cabinet -D of wood, meta-l or plastic has securedthereto an inner metal box E having a bottom o1' base l0 and a frontwall 12. Box side walls Iare indicated at 14 and a top at lo. Thecabinet and box may be formed as a separate unit with exterior trayexposure or may become a part of a wall in the leasalonso? shallow trayT overlaps the adjacent edges of the box wall l2 in conventional manner.A handle 34 is attached at 36 to the wall 32. The shallow card receivingtray T has an inner metal cover 38 near its outer or handle end. Thetray Icover 38 has rearwardly projecting covered legs or bifurcatedportions 40 which .provides a trough k42. designed to receive snugly therectangular shaped tail end 44 of the special card A. The legs |40merely extend toward the inner end of the tray as shown in 4the variousgures and provide a tixed seat Ito-r the card A. Welded at 46 to the'sides 30 of the tray T are longitudinally disposed tray guides 48having upwardly and downwardly turned portions 50 yand 452,respectively, that slide on the spaced vertical tray supports 24. Spacedlaterally disposed tray stops d prevent complete withdrawal of the trayT by abutment box wall 12. v

The bottom 23 of the tray T 'has spaced longitudinally disposed parallelslits v56 therein as shown clearly in FIGURE 7. As shown in FIGURES 1and 7, spaced vertically disposed ramps 158 project upwardly through theslits 5o in the tray bottom 28.1 The ramps 58 are supported inwardlyfrom the lbox side walls 14 by integral bent metal angles `till weldedat 62 to the tray supports 18.

The ramps 5d emerge from and slant rearwardly and upwardly through `theslits 56. The upper narrow edges 64 of the ramps S8 project rearwardlyin an over-hanging manner to 'form card locking and extracting means aswill be later described.

A conventional automatic electric time clock C is xedly supported at 66on the bottom 10i of the metal box v E. The Ibox bottom l0 is Valsoopened `at 68 near its Iforward end to permit dropping :of special cardsA therethrough and into a card container 70 in the cabinet D.r

The .special-card A as shown in the drawings-may be made of cardboard,plastic or other suitable material. The card A has Ia ilat headed arrowshaped time recording Aforward end '7.2. The .arrow shaped end 72 of thecard A has dual spaced ears 74 projecting laterally beyond Itherectangular shaped shank or tail 44 for engagement with the spaced ramps58 and beneath projection 64 ater the tnay T and card A have been thrustto their extreme inner position. At that time the forward edge 76 of thecard end 72 is between the jaws of the time clock and indication ofmotor vehicle return time is beingrecorded. An opening 77 in the traypermits the striker ofthe clock C to operate in ya normal manner. f

The speci-al `card A has .a contract and key receiving envelope 78.adhesively secured thereto on its upper face. The card A may bereinforced at 80' if cardboard is used.

The operation of the device is relatively simple. *The against the innerface of the Ilirontv 4 lesee or driver -upon return of the motor vehicleIor truck to the original or any other :station of the parent companyplaces his contract and car key in the'en'velope 78 of the special cardA. He then places the card A in the trough 42 of the tray T which he haswithdrawn to its outermost position. The ears 74 of the card A restagainst the Vforward edges of the legs-4tl in the tray T.

.. The .tray is then move-d inwardly and the 4card A is forced upon thespaced ramp portions 58. As the tray approaches 'A 4remains in thisposition until rover which said time-card final innerposition, the:forward edge 761 ofthe card A has dropped into position to be engagedwith the time clock C Iand vehicle return time is stamped thereon.vTheatrowhead end 72 ofthe card A has passedA beyond the spaced ramps 58and the ears74 have `dropped below the projecting edges 6d thereof.The-time recordedcard a succeeding vehicle user withdraws Ithe tray Tfor placement of la new card A thereon. Upon withdrawal of the tray, thecard ears 74 are held against rearward movementby the ramps 58 and whenvthe tray T has been Withdrawn from beneath card A, it drops `downwardlythrough the opening 68 into the container 70. The stored 4cards arecomputed the following day and billings made in thev usual manner.

While the embodiment shown .and described in detail herein are fullycapable of performing the objects and achieving `the advantages desired,the invention is not limited to the specific form, as it will `be clearthat numerous changes Imay be madeby those skilled in the art l ywithoutdeparting trom the inventive concept herein disnet; -a container securedagainst one wall of said cabinet; e

a time clock in said cabinet; tray supporting guides in said container;a tray movable on said guides into and out 4ot operative position withsaid time clock; means for preventing complete withdrawal of said tray;a time card yadapted to contain a vehicle lease and key detachablyassociated with said tray; said time card having laterally extendingears; -a card seat formed in said tray conforming to and supporting theouter end of said card for insuring inward movement of said card to saidclock; a card storing container below said tray and guides; andmechanism initially permitting inward movement lof said card on saidtray but automatically resisting rearward movement of said card on saidtray yand forcing same into said container, said mechanism includingramps, ears pass upon said inward movement lof said card, said earspreventing outward movement of said card when said tray is movedbackwardly.

2. Aparatus according to claim l wherein said timeclock is actuatable bysaid tray upon inward movement thereof.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NatickMay k3, 1910 Friet; Aug. 1s, 1953 I um

1. A DEVICE OF THE CLASS DESCRIBED, COMPRISING: A CABINET; A CONTAINERSECURED AGAINST ONE WALL OF SAID CABINET; A TIME CLOCK IN SAID CABINET;TRAY SUPPORTING GUIDES IN SAID CONTAINER; A TRAY MOVABLE ON SAID GUIDESINTO AND OUT OF OPERATIVE POSITION WITH SAID TIME CLOCK; MEANS FORPREVENTING COMPLETE WITHDRAWAL OF SAID TRAY; A TIME CARD ADAPTED TOCONTAIN A VEHICLE LEASE AND KEY DETACH-ABLY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID TRAY;SAID TIME CARD HAVING LATERALLY EXTENDING EARS; A CARD SEAT FROMED INSAID TRAY CONFORMING TO AND SUPPORTING THE OUTER END OF SAID CARD FORINSURING INWARD MOVEMENT OF SAID CARD TO SAID CLOCK; A CARD STORINGCONTAINER BELOW SAID TRAY AND GUIDES; AND MECHANISM INTIALLY PERMITTINGINWARD MOVEMENT OF SAID CARD ON SAID TRAY BUT AUTOMATICALLY RESISTINGREARWARD MOVEMENT OF SAID CARD ON SAID TRAY AND FORCING SAME INTO SAIDCONTAINER, SAID MECHANISM INCLUDING RAMPS, OVER WHICH SAID TIME-CARDEARS PASS UPON SAID INWARD MOVEMENT OF SAID CARD, SAID EARS PREVENTINGOUTWARD MOVEMENT OF SAID CARD WHEN SAID TRAY IS MOVED BACKWARDLY.